Why it works: Currant and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes. The science ↓
Currant Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Pick currants from stems and wash them thoroughly.
Make the jam
Place the currants in a preserving kettle and boil for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring often and skimming off any scum.
Add ¾ pound of sugar for every pound of fruit and boil for an additional 30 minutes, stirring almost constantly.
Jar and seal
Pour the jam into small jars or glasses.
Seal the jars by pressing a paper cut to fit the glasses down close on the fruit, then cover with larger papers brushed on the inside with egg white, turning the edges down over the outside of the glass.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Currant + sugartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,256 recipes
Currant and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Currants
- Provide the tart fruit flavor and the pectin-rich body that the jam sets around.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it thicken and keep as it cooks down.
The step that matters
Stirring during the final boil. Sugar and fruit sitting on the bottom of a hot kettle scorch easily, so stirring almost constantly prevents burnt flavor and sticking while the jam thickens.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
More currant jam recipes
You might also like
Red Currant Jelly65 recipes
Currant Ice Cream32 recipes
Currant Sherbet9 recipes
Currant and Raspberry Ice7 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.